NORTHERN SONG DYNASTY, 11TH-12TH CENTURY

The unobtrusiveness of the lotus carved under the ivory-toned glaze on this finely potted cup is indicative of the refinement of Ding wares. For an example in the Metropolitan Museum of Art with a similarly carved lotus see S. Valenstein, A Handbook of Chinese Ceramics, New York, 1975, pl. 82. A similar bowl from a Jin tomb is illustrated in a line drawing by J. Wirgin, Sung Ceramic Designs, London, 1979, fig. 35b (2).